When flames raced through a Willis home this week, Houston's tragic fire was on the minds of Montgomery County firefighters who pulled their crews out of the home when it appeared that it might collapse.

The decision on Tuesday was right on point, as the roof of the home on Thompson Drive off FM 1097 came down only moments after firefighters pulled back.

Houston's five-alarm blaze - the deadliest in the department's 118-year history - claimed the lives of firefighters Robert Bebee, Matthew Renaud, Robert Garner and Anne Sullivan. They died when a roof collapsed at Bhojan restaurant, next to Southwest Inn at 6855 Southwest Freeway. The May 31 blaze also injured 13 other firefighters.

The four deaths, Oliphant said, highlight the dangers that firefighters face on a daily basis.

"When we got there (Willis fire), we went defensive and we estimated the type of structure, how long it was burning, the intensity of the fire, and the structural integrity," he said. "We didn't feel it was safe to have firefighters in there."

He added, "If this (residential fire) would have happened prior to the (Houston fire), we would have done the same thing."

About 50 firefighters from North Montgomery County, Montgomery, Conroe, New Waverly, Lake Conroe, Needham and Central Montgomery County responded to the three-alarm blaze.

An elderly man inside the home suffered first- and second-degree burns, and was in stable condition Wednesday at an area hospital, Oliphant said. His granddaughter who was also in inside the home was not hurt, Oliphant said.